Observation/Reflection #5 - How Do I Stop This Thing?
Observe how and when your teacher closes his or her lessons and/or activities. How does he or she end each class period? Is there a set routine? If so, describe it. Pay special attention to when you teacher begins to end the class. Does he or she return to the purpose or main idea of the lesson? Does he or she "set up" the homework or the next day's activity? Is the teacher still teaching when the bell rings or are students already poised to leave? Is there some "dead time" at the end of the class period? If so, how much? How do students react to your teacher's closing strategies? Remember that these questions are a guide and that you don't have to answer each one. Be sure you reflect on your observations and describe how you will try to end your classes. What supports for these ideas might you include in your lesson plans?
In the high school, I have rarely observed a lesson without some sort of closure. The only case in which I have would have been a lab that the students took longer than expected on. Typically my cooperating teacher will summarize what students have observed or learned in class. He will usually end with a class discussion, asking students guiding or leading questions to discuss what the main point of the lesson was. This is a good way to end class because a lot of times he can assess whether or not the students actually "got it". If they have homework that is related to the lesson for the day, then he will say a one or two word sentence to link it to the lesson. The classes that I have observed have always been on Friday afternoons. My cooperating teacher does a good job of trying to keep the students on task and end the lesson properly, even if the students are already in "weekend mode". I think closure is important for the students and they seem to respond well to it considering the time of day.
In my middle school, closure is evident as well. Typically the lesson will end with my cooperating teacher linking the lesson to something that the students have to do as homework, or letting the students know why what they are doing is important. This few minutes at the end of every lesson gives the students a chance to ask questions or clear up any misunderstanding. I have only once observed a class at the middle school without some sort of closure, which was a practical exam that the students took. This was only due to time constraints. But even then the next time I visited, the teacher reviewed the importance of them taking the practical, before moving on to the next topic. I think as far as my lesson plans, a good class discussion or a quick review, even if its only for five minutes, is an excellent way to wrap up a lesson and clear up misconceptions.
Observation/Reflection #5 - How Do I Stop This Thing?
Observe how and when your teacher closes his or her lessons and/or activities. How does he or she end each class period? Is there a set routine? If so, describe it. Pay special attention to when you teacher begins to end the class. Does he or she return to the purpose or main idea of the lesson? Does he or she "set up" the homework or the next day's activity? Is the teacher still teaching when the bell rings or are students already poised to leave? Is there some "dead time" at the end of the class period? If so, how much? How do students react to your teacher's closing strategies? Remember that these questions are a guide and that you don't have to answer each one. Be sure you reflect on your observations and describe how you will try to end your classes. What supports for these ideas might you include in your lesson plans?In the high school, I have rarely observed a lesson without some sort of closure. The only case in which I have would have been a lab that the students took longer than expected on. Typically my cooperating teacher will summarize what students have observed or learned in class. He will usually end with a class discussion, asking students guiding or leading questions to discuss what the main point of the lesson was. This is a good way to end class because a lot of times he can assess whether or not the students actually "got it". If they have homework that is related to the lesson for the day, then he will say a one or two word sentence to link it to the lesson. The classes that I have observed have always been on Friday afternoons. My cooperating teacher does a good job of trying to keep the students on task and end the lesson properly, even if the students are already in "weekend mode". I think closure is important for the students and they seem to respond well to it considering the time of day.
In my middle school, closure is evident as well. Typically the lesson will end with my cooperating teacher linking the lesson to something that the students have to do as homework, or letting the students know why what they are doing is important. This few minutes at the end of every lesson gives the students a chance to ask questions or clear up any misunderstanding. I have only once observed a class at the middle school without some sort of closure, which was a practical exam that the students took. This was only due to time constraints. But even then the next time I visited, the teacher reviewed the importance of them taking the practical, before moving on to the next topic. I think as far as my lesson plans, a good class discussion or a quick review, even if its only for five minutes, is an excellent way to wrap up a lesson and clear up misconceptions.